Abe Martin (comic strip)

Abe Martin
First recognized Abe Martin cartoon
Author(s)	Kin Hubbard
Current status/schedule	Concluded gag-a-day strip
Launch date	December 17, 1904
End date	1937
Syndicate(s)	John F. Dille Co. (c. 1916–1937)
Publisher(s)	The Indianapolis News
Genre(s)	Humor comics

Abe Martin was an American newspaper gag-a-day comic strip, drawn by Kin Hubbard and published from 1904 until 1937 in The Indianapolis News and other newspapers.[1]

Character

Abe Martin was an anti-hero character, making wisecracker jokes and uttering sayings which became popular over the country. He made his first appearance on December 17, 1904.[2] Originally the character's locality wasn't specified, but in a strip from February 3, 1905, he announced: "I'm goin' ter move ter Brown County Tewmorrow", which he did.[3] At the time the character's popularity was such that by 1910 over 200 newspapers carried the strip and special almanacs were made.[4] Notable fans were George Ade, Will Rogers, and James Whitcomb Riley.[2] In an interview with Dick Cavett, S. J. Perelman said Groucho Marx read and quoted Hubbard's writing.[5]

Early version

The Indianapolis News published a cartoon by Hubbard on September 15, 1904, featuring another character named Abe Martin.

An earlier character by Hubbard named Abe Martin, September 15, 1904

Other one-panel cartoons of the era

• Ching Chow
• Hambone's Meditations

External links

• "List of Hubbard's 'Abe Martin' books". The Indianapolis News. August 7, 1944.

Sources

1. Holtz, Allan (2012). American Newspaper Comics: An Encyclopedic Reference Guide. Ann Arbor: The University of Michigan Press. p. 41. ISBN 9780472117567.
2. Weaver, Bill. "Abe Martin Lives," Our Brown County. Accessed Nov. 18, 2018.
3. Abe Martin History Archived September 1, 2015, at the Wayback Machine, Brown County State Park website. Accessed Nov. 18, 2018.
4. Abe Martin's Almanac for 1909, p. 0, at Google Books^[dead link‍]
5. Groucho & Cavett, American Masters DVD, bonus materials, 2021